Brief Communication: Climate, topographical and meteorological investigation of the 16–17 June 2013 Kedarnath (India) disaster causes

Abstract

The devastating episode (17–18 June 2013) at Kedarnath (Uttrakhand, India) caused huge loss of lives and physical/material wealth. To understand this catastrophic event, rainfall/convective data and associated climate meteorological parameters are investigated. Low pressure zone with very high cloud cover (60–90%), and relative humidity (70–100%) associated with low (< 4 m s −1) wind velocity over Kedarnath region during 15–17 June are observed. The cause of disaster seems to be the heavy and continuous rainfall associated with snow melting and over flooding/collapse of the Chorabari Lake, located upstream. Monsoon advancement was much faster due to the presence of convectively active phase of the Madden Julian Oscillation.